The present invention generally relates to electric appliances and more particularly, to a push-button switch locking device for use in an electric appliance of the type having a push-button switch.
Small-sized electric appliances such as an electric shaver, electric hair clippers, a portable audio appliance, etc., each provided with a push-button switch are known. However, the prior art electric appliances have inconveniences in that, although the push-button switches can be operated lightly through the depression thereof by the fingers of an user, such push-button switches are likely to be accidentally turned on through inadvertent contact of the push-button with other articles when the electric appliances are carried about in bags and the like or kept in custody, with the result that batteries for the electric appliances are undesirably discharged unnecessarily.
In order to eliminate such a drawback of the known electric appliances as described above, there has been proposed push-button switch locking devices for use in the electric appliances, each including a locking member. However, the conventional push-button switch locking devices for use in electric appliances have such a disadvantage that, since the locking member is spaced away from the push-button switch, the user is required to operate the push-button switch after the push-button switch has been unlocked through manipulation of the locking member, so that the user cannot operate the push-button switch locking device and the push-button switch very quickly and in an efficient manner and thus, the user is inclined to fail to operate the push-button switch locking device.
Furthermore, the prior art push-button switch locking devices for use in the electric appliances have been disadvantageous in that the push-button switch locking devices are complicated in structure, thereby resulting in frequent malfunctions of the devices.